I have a Marlin 30-30 (my sons now I guess) and a Marlin .32 win special. The .32 was my grandpas and three generations of us have carried that rifle. Its filled the freezer countless times. No blueing to be seen. Around the action is completely polished from being carried. If my house was on fire I bet it would be in the top 3 things I would be running in to grab. Two years ago I won a Henry 45-70 at a NRA dinner. I immediately decided it would be my new fourwheeler/camp rifle. There is just something about it I dont like. I cant put my finger on it. It shoots well. The action is smooth. The recoil doesnt bother me at all. Its just not a Marlin. Anybody else feel the same way?

I've never been able to like a Henry. I've tried but just can't do it. They might be the most dependable, accurate , and well made rifle out there, but I just can't get over that kind of Ugly.

I'm glad that some people like them. Give me a Winchester, or a Marlin..

Every Henry I’ve purchased had a crappy trigger and other problems requiring service. I’ve tried to like them too.

I like traditional lever guns such as the pre-1900 Marlin and Winchester designs. I even like the reproductions that are true to the design. I don't like anything Henry makes. They sorta, kind'a look like a traditional lever gun to most people. But they are not true to the original design. By all accounts they shoot fine. But I just don't care for them.

I've got a Henry lever action .22 mag. that ain't bad but I'll stick with my Winchesters and Marlins for centerfires.

Henry`s just don`t look or feel right.

i won a nice looking Henry 22 but its a rougher action but my Marlin 39A is still a much smoother rifle and i feel built better too. myself i don`t buy Henry rifles if i buy new lever rifles i like Browning BLR rifles smooth,have a magazine/clip for bullets so bullet tips don`t get smashed and these BLR`s are very accurate too in this very strong action.

That's funny. Henry lever action .22's are known for their slick, smooth actions. My sons Henry .22 is smoother than my old Marlin 39 and it's more accurate to boot. My Henry .22 mag. is also very smooth.

My Marlin is a sentimental favorite, but I like both Henry and Marlin.

Every Henry I see just has a blocky rectangular appearance to me.
The lines just dont seem to flow on em to my eye.
The High cut combs on the stocks just look strange to me.
The front sight shape being just a basic blocky square or rectangle dont look right to me.
And loading from a tube, even though they have come out with gate loading as of late is another minus in my mind.
More unneeded motions to reload it and parts to go wrong. JMO.
Brass receiver models.... No thanks.....


Not to offend you guys that like em.
But they are fuggly looking rifles. IMO....
And the price of em is rather high it seems.
Money waaaaay better spent on a classic solid VG condition or better Winchester or Marlin. IMO...

It's all personal preference. That really is what it boils down too.

Marlins and Winchesters are way better looking and ergonomically functional rifles than Henry,s

JMO...

Few years ago I bought one of the Golden Boys in 44 Mag, it shot ok I guess, I just never liked it so I traded it off. It felt like a piece of lead pipe with a stock hooked to it.

[quote=renegade50]Every Henry I see just has a blocky rectangular appearance to me.
The lines just dont seem to flow on em to my eye.
The High cut combs on the stocks just look strange to me.
The front sight shape being just a basic blocky square or rectangle dont look right to me.
And loading from a tube, even though they have come out with gate loading as of late is another minus in my mind.
More unneeded motions to reload it and parts to go wrong. JMO.
Brass receiver models.... No thanks.....


Not to offend you guys that like em.
But they are fuggly looking rifles. IMO....
And the price of em is rather high it seems.
Money waaaaay better spent on a classic solid VG condition or better Winchester or Marlin. IMO...

It's all personal preference. That really is what it boils down too.

Marlins and Winchesters are way better looking and ergonomically functional rifles than Henry,s

JMO...



AGREED X2

A friend of mine has reason to know that Henry's customer service is really great. So they've got that going for them.

I have two Golden Boy 22's. I like the brass look receivers and the actions are very smooth. The action is very similar to my Ithaca saddle gun. What I don't like about the Henry's is the stock has too much drop. Almost like you have to raise your cheek off the stock to get a proper sight picture.

From a letter my brother got from Henry's owner his dad designed the action for the Ithaca. My brother inherited our Dads Ithaca that he bought ~ 45 years ago.

The Ithaca 72 saddlegun was essentially identical to the standard Henry lever action .22's and .22 magnums of today. The Ithaca 72 was made by Erma in West Germany. Anthony Imperato's { CEO of Henry} father sold the design to Erma and over the years the Erma manufactured gun was imported and sold by Ithaca, Iver Johnson and Erma.

The standard Henry .22 and .22 magnum stocks have much less drop than the golden boys.

I had a henry .22 mag with an ejection issue right out of the box. I will say Henry's customer service was top notch.

I wanted a lever in .32 H&R or .327fed.

Marlin's 1894CB in .32 H&R goes for more than $1,200 - if you can find one.

I bought a Henry carbine in .327fed for $674 plus tax etc.

There was no choice for me.

I'd buy a Henry lever 22 mag because it's really the only thing goin, other than the hard to come by discontinued models. And while I don't think it competes with a 9422M, I might like it better for a usin rifle than the Marlin 22 magnum with it's fat 1894 receiver.

The Henry rimfires are slender and lightweight with a slick action. But with their cast receiver and sheet metal cover, along with a plastic part here and there, and the unusual finish on the wood and metal, I don't think they're in the same class of heirloom type rifles as many of the Marlin and Winchester lever actions. A regular Henry lever 22 couldn't replace my 39M.

Mostly I like the classy, solid, workman-like Marlin centerfire lever actions, along with the Winchester 92 which looks right handy. And like pete53, I'd rock a BLR. Old Winchesters are cool for collectors. Henry... if I won a raffle I surely wouldn't turn it down.

Was it a pump? I knew they had some issues with the pump action 22 mag, but haven't heard of problems with the lever actions.

That's sound logic.

I just ordered a Henry Big Boy Steel Carbine .44 magnum. Supposed to arrive Thursday. I'll give a report. The only lever I ever owned was a Marlin 336ER .356 Winchester. How stupid I was to have ever sold that one.

I put a cheap red dot (that I had on hand) on the new Henry carbine. Lots of fun to shoot. Shot 44 Specials/Magnum; noticeable recoil was super low with both; unlike the Ruger 77/44. Once zeroed in ringing a 10" gong at 110 yards was Bang! Ding! Still undecided whether to put something like a Vortex Venom on it or the Leupold 2.5X scope. I cannot shoot any type of irons with these 60 yr old eyes. Ultimately I plan on carrying up and down the hills/hollers in Tucker County WV.

one thing good about Henry rifles is at our annual club raffle we always buy 2 Henry rifles and i believe these Henry rifles in our 10 gun raffle are a great draw to sell raffle tickets. but for me i still like a Marlin 39A better ,might be because i grew up with a Marlin ?

I prefer the Marlin. I’ve owned a own quite a few. I recently picked up a Henry All Weather. I don’t know why I liked that rifle as much as I do but I really like it. Maybe because I know I can leave my marlins in the gun cabinet on rainy days now.